Video Conferencing

Avistar's Black Friday news

Doug Mohney — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 21:06:08 -0500

Avistar Communications, a company incorporating its video solutions into larger UC packages from other software vendors as well as offering its own UC video conferencing solution, announced it had received a Nasdaq delisting warning on November 21. The company's press release went out on Friday - yes, "Black Friday" - November 28.

Under Nasdaq rules a company must have at least $2.5 million in stockholders' equity, $35 million in market value of listed securities, or $500,000 of net income from continuing operations for the most recently completed fiscal year, or two of the three most recently competed fiscal years.

Avistar has 30 days to comply with the $35 million provision by recording a closing stock price of $1.02 or higher for a minimum of 10 business days. If the stock can't mange that, Nasdaq sends over another notice and Avistar gets the right to drag it out in appeals if Nasdaq's review panel allows.

According to Avistar, they got a recent contract with IBM that provided a $6 million upfront payment, with $3 million received in November and ongoing royalty payments on product sales.

If it's any comfort, Avistar isn't alone in its stock market listing woes. Vonage received a delisting notice from NYSE in October, but the company has 6 months to boost its stock price above $1 per share.

For more:
- Read the MarketWatch press release dumped on Black Friday. Release.

BT surveys on UC

Doug Mohney — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 10:34:35 -0500

Hot on the heels of its VoIP survey, BT is now reporting companies are taking a "phased approach" to adopting unified communication (UC) and collaboration (UCC) technologies. We're going to stick with UC for this discussion since the "collaboration" part is typically rolled into the UC tent.

The largest segment of survey respondents - 37 percent - will implement one UC application at a time. The next largest segment - 29 percent - plans to implement several UC applications simultaneously, with the latter approach the favorite of 42 percent of IT organizations supporting over 10,000 employees.

Survey respondents will look for help in implementing UC from multiple vendors, especially those who demonstrate technology leadership and the ability to integrate products from multiple vendors. Nearly half of those IT organizations will turn to service providers such as (ta-da!) BT.

Also, 22 percent of respondents reported implementing some aspects of a comprehensive UC solution, while 21 percent have no UC underway; the latter cite organizational and cultural issues as roadblocks to UC adoption. Over the next two years, a half dozen UC components will be implemented by a majority of those organizations responding, with unified messaging and presence being implemented most often in the coming 12 months; desktop video conferencing, "immersive video," document management and workflow are also on the to-do list.

Logitech buys SightSpeed for $30M

Pete Wylie — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 09:32:52 -0400

Logitech International, the Swiss manufacturer of PC peripherals, announced the acquisition of SIP-based video communications company SightSpeed for around $30 million Tuesday. The deal is expected to close in early November, following completion of standard closing procedures and conditions.

In a release, Logitech stated SightSpeed's video technology and research and development team would allow the manufacturer to develop new video solutions for the home market. Logitech claimed the merger would produce "future video calling initiatives that can enable cross-platform video communications with an intuitive, lifelike experience, for people sitting in front of a personal computer or with their family in a living room."

Logitech, perhaps best known for computer mice it makes, is making a serious play into the nascent personal video communications market with the SightSpeed buy. It already sells high-end video cameras for online video conferencing and chat, and some VoIP equipment as well.

"With this acquisition, we are significantly augmenting our current video R&D resources to help us move more quickly toward our goals for video services that complement the way people socialize, communicate and enjoy entertainment," said Junien Labrousse, executive vice president of Logitech's Products group, in the Logitech release.

There was no mention in the release of whether SightSpeed's 25 employees would continue to operate out of their Fremont, Calif., office, but Logitech's U.S. HQ happens in Fremont too, so any relocation should be relatively seamless.

For more:
- see the Logitech/SightSpeed release here

Skype: VoIP is dead

Doug Mohney — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 12:48:50 -0400

Skype's GM of audio and video has declared VoIP dead. Wonder what that does to SkypeIn and SkypeOut?

Speaking at IT Expo in Los Angeles earlier this week, GM Jonathan Christensen declared VoIP morte as he walked through the history of Internet telephony, noting the benefits of lower cost, a who-cares attitude toward geographic number plans, and the irrelevance of long-distance calling in an IP world.

Christensen said unbundling is steering voice technologies in an unexpected direction and making them less important. As a result, IM and its support system become much more critical. IM, presence and chat are all much more important, and Skype should get its due for putting together IM, voice, video, NAT and peer-to-peer technology.

Moving forward, there are three pillars "beyond VoIP." Skype and other services require an "agreed relationship" where both parties agree to communicate. Secondly, new audio tech, including wideband audio, will improve communications. Finally, higher resolution video will make video conferencing "more real."

For more:
- TMCnet blogs Christensen calling VoIP dead

SPOTLIGHT: Natural England Greening VoIP

Doug Mohney — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 12:21:52 -0400

Natural England, a public agency in the U.K. combining three different land and ecology groups, is trumpeting its use of VoIP to reduce carbon.

Its 2,500 users across 44 sites will be brought together with VoIP to cut costs and reduce carbon footprint. Expected savings over the next five years could be up to $6.4 million, with savings from reduced travel expenditures. Video conferencing should yield savings of 20,000 man-days of travel and two million miles of car trips.

For more:
- VoIP solution and carbon reductions by Teleappliant

Related articles:
TIA think green thoughts with EIATRACK
Green is the new black
OnRelay Picks the Green Fight